The future of associations

A few years ago, I wrote regularly for The Boardroom, a publication for association executives, on how trends are impacting professional and other associations. I covered workplace issues — such as integrating Gen-Y into the workplace — as well as rapid career, knowledge and skills change. The articles still generate a lot of traffic as people find them through search engines; and continue to bear relevance today.

Why are associations finding things so challenging? According to a recent study out of the University of California (Berkeley,) we now produce as much new information every six months as was produced in the first 300,000 years of human existence. That type of rapid knowledge growth changes careers faster than ever before, and the associations who represent these career areas must relentlessly focus upon innovation within the areas of professional education, strategic direction and the nature of member services.

These articles were often reprinted in various state and national “associations of associations”, and still bear relevance today, so they might be worth a read.

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• Read the association executive articles
• Details on Jim’s keynotes in the association sector